Innocence, A Blade 2 Fanfic
by NekoXMimi
Summary: Blade meets a girl who claims to know Whistler and wants to help him. Is she genuine? Could Blade and Scud have found themselves an ally? Rated M. Forgive mistakes. I do not own Blade 2 or any of its characters, but Mute MINE!
1. Chapter 1 Meet the Mutant

Scud whimpered. He was not cut out for the whole slaying thing. He was a lover, not a fighter. Blade had run off during the fight and left him alone in the network of back alleys. Hopefully any suckheads in the area had run off or followed Blade and weren't stalking him. Wishing he were back in his nice, safe workshop, he stepped gingerly round a corner and came face-to-face with a pile of brimstone and ash. The vampire's head seemed to be too far off from its body for good health. There were little slivers of sloppy, damp ash, indicating what used to be the contents of a stomach. There was a flash of movement from round a corner. Scud held out the handgun, shaking. Whatever was ballsy enough to shred a vamp like that could in no way be good news. A girl stepped out into the light. In surprise Scud fired. The girl dodged the silver bullet.

"Hey! You could have hurt me!" She said indignantly. Her spiky, black-and-purple hair fell in front of her green eyes to her cheekbones. She wore an old, grey army jacket and an oversized Nirvana tee that hung off her skinny frame, baggy jeans and weird leather goggles on her head. Despite the boyish, scruffy threads, she was cute. But none of that held Scud's attention. What did where the tattoos entwining up each arm and the slightly pointed ears that were adorned with rings and studs everywhere. A sword was strapped to her back.

"Holy shit. Who the hell are you?" Scud gawped at the girl. He didn't lower his gun. A year running around with Blade had taught him caution.

"It's cool, I'm not going to hurt you." She was about his age and had a British accent that was slightly soothing. As she spoke he saw a glint of pointed canines. They weren't long and slender, like a vampire's, but more triangular, like they were designed for tearing rather than piercing.

"You some kind of suckhead?" He asked. Or accused.

"No. When I know exactly what I am, then I'll tell you." She walked towards him. "I'm Zilla. Zi for short. Zi-zi if you wanna piss me off. Most people call me Mute."

"Mute? You don't seem that quiet. I'm Josh. Call me Scud." He said warily.

"Mute's short for mutant. I need to find the Daywalker. Where is he?"

"He's busy right now, can I take a message?" Scud said mockingly. The girl giggled.

"You're funny." She said. Scud was taken aback. She was serious. She stared at him with her green eyes, head cocked onto one side. "I saw you fight. You're okay for a human."

"Oh, yeah. Thanks." Said Scud gruffly. Suddenly Blade dropped in on them. Mute instantly crouched in a defensive position, startled. Her lips drew back a little.

"What's this shit?" Blade asked Scud, ignoring her. "Why didn't you kill it?"

"She says she's not a vampire."

"Doesn't smell like one."

"Because I'm NOT." Mute cut in, irritated with Blade's attitude. She got to her feet. "I'm Mute. I'm a friend of Whistler's." She had Blade's attention. Scud sighed. Anything about B's precious boss always snapped him to attention.

"He's never mentioned you before." Blade said carefully.

"He had no reason to. I know where they have him. I would go after him myself but I can't do it. He's too heavily guarded." Blade said nothing. He knew he'd have to trust the little freak. He had lost Whistler's trail for a while.

"What are you?" Blade demanded.

"I don't know." Mute said, a little sadly. "I don't remember anything prior to being on the streets at five. Whistler found me when I was sixteen, gave me some weapons, and nudged me in a more useful direction than just dodging the authorities and nicking stuff. I had a use for my… abilities. I owe him that."

"Then repay that and tell me where the hell he is." Growled Blade. Suddenly the girl bent over and rubbed her eyes, removing a pair of blue eye contacts.

"Much better. Those hurt." She said, raising her head to them. Scud jumped back in alarm, and she grinned impishly. Her eyes were bright yellow. "They have him in Moscow." She told Blade. "I'm not sure where he is exactly, but here are a couple of possible addresses." She said, passing him a piece of paper. Scrawled across it were three addresses. "Thank me next time. I have stuff to do." She grinned. She turned to the derelict building beside them and began scaling it like a gecko. Mute turned back for a moment. "Oh, and Blade? Watch your back. Something is stirring I can feel it."

Then she was gone.

****************************************************

Blade raised his head to the air and sniffed slightly. He was on the trail of a gang of at least five vampires who looked like they were out for trouble. They had slipped away just before he launched an attack, but he was on to them again. High up on the rooftops, he could see and smell better. Any minute now he'd pick their scent back up.

Blade heard the shouting before he smelt the suckheads. Angry shouting. By the smell of it, angry vampire shouting. He ran across the building and leapt across to the other. He leaned over the edge a little like a dark gargoyle and looked into the alley below.

The five vamps had a kid in a dark coat backed against the wall. Blade realised it was Mute, the weird girl he had seen nine months before. She lashed out with her katana, snarling like a wildcat. The vampires hooted at her but kept their distance.

"C'mon, Freaky." Said a scuzzy one with blonde hair. He made a mooch-mooch sound like he was coaxing a cat. The others howled with laughter. "You need to let your hair down a bit. Why don't we help you?" One sneaked to the side and knocked the sword out of the girl's hands. Blade saw the skinny body disappear as the vampires pounced, kicking and punching. One pulled a knife. Blade decided this had gone far enough.

He dropped into the alleyway, startling the vamps. They snarled and tried to escape, but he ashed them all in a hail of silver bullets. He ran over to the girl, who was hunched against a wall, gasping. As she turned, Blade's heart sank. She had been bitten; blood trickled from a bite wound in her shoulder. She threw up her hands, panting.

"It's ok, I get munched on all the time. I fight vampire venom off." She huffed. Blade was amazed, but said nothing. The girl really was a freak. She reached down to her leg, whimpering in pain. The bone protruded, poking through the fabric of her ripped jeans. "Aw, shit! One of those fuckers stamped on my damn leg!" She moaned. Without a word Blade scooped her up in his arms. She protested weakly. "Put me downnnnnn!" Mute whined. He ignored her, picking up her sword and striding through the streets to his car. Not many people were around, but the ones who were stopped and stared to see the tall dark man carrying the injured girl. He gently put her in the passenger seat of the car, got in and drove. The girl's yellow eyes widened. "Hey, wow, a Dodge. Nice."

"Shut up. Save your strength. Get blood on my car and you're dead. And put your seatbelt on." Blade spoke in his deep monotone.

"Maybe I wouldn't need it if you didn't drive so fast." Mute grumbled, strapping herself in and wincing painfully as the belt pressed on broken ribs. "You found the old man yet?"

"He's here, in Prague. And by coincidence, so are you." Blade replied, raising an eyebrow.

"Just looking out for you, Grumpy."

"I don't need looking out for. You do. Because you do stuff like get beaten up by suckheads." Blade said dismissively. "Amateur."

"If I'm so amateur, then train me."

"No."

"Please?"

"No."

"By the way, I'm the Fisherman." Blade raised an eyebrow sceptically. The girl was talking about a rumour, a phantom hunter that prowled these streets and had a knack for "gutting" its vampire victims.

"I doubt that." He said.

"I am! Stop this damn car and I'll show you!" She huffed, reaching for her sword that lay on the back seat. He pushed her back, shaking his head.

"You're one stupid kid." He said, gesturing to her leg.

"Trust me, I could gut a vamp with a broken- ah!" She cried, as the muscle in the leg went into spasms, jerking the compound fracture painfully.

"Hold still!" Blade growled as the girl whimpered. There was silence for a moment. Then Blade spoke again. "Did they touch you?"

"Duh!" said Mute, gesturing to her black eye, bite mark and mangled leg.

"You know what I mean."

"Oh. Well, one had a good grope of my boobs, but you showed up before anything else happened." She said, offhandedly. A snarl rippled in Blade's throat. "Cool it. It's not worse hasn't happened to me before."

"What did they want? That wasn't a random attack."

"Well, they took me by surprise, otherwise they'd be dead. They asked me if I wanted to join them and their skanky leader against you. They didn't give a name. I told them to suck on silver and die, because I'd rather eat my own foot. That's when it got nasty." Blade's knuckles tightened on the wheel.

"Where are you taking me, anyway?" Mute said quickly to distract him.

"My base." He replied. The girl nodded, and started counting the cars whizzing past to distract herself from the pain.

As Blade carried Mute in, a ruffled Scud intercepted them.

"Aw, B, not her again!" He moaned. "I know she knows the old man, but the base? Why?" Blade's lips pulled back in warning. Then Scud saw the girl's leg as Blade set her down.

"I rang a friend of mine, a doctor." Said Blade to Mute. "She told me how to reset this kind of fracture. Are you sure you don't want to go to hospital?"

"Positive. They'll hand me over to the authorities faster than you can say blood test. Besides, I heal very quickly. We need to sort it out before it starts healing all wonky."

"We don't have anything for the pain." Blade warned. Scud cut in.

"I have this!" he piped up, holding out his joint. Mute looked at him pityingly.

"Nah."

"Suit yourself." He shrugged, tucking it behind his ear. "Anything you need me to do, B?"

"Hold her. This is going to hurt." Scud nodded, and wrapped his arms around Mute's chest, holding her securely. Blade looked at Mute. "Ready?"

"Count me down." Whispered Mute, closing her eyes and gripping Scud's t-shirt sleeve.

"Three." Scud held the girl tighter. She buried her head in his arm, breathing in the strangely pleasant mix of oil and weed.

"Two. One." There was a snap, and the bottom fell out of the world.

Mute woke up about two minutes later, Scud's arms still around her. She groaned.

"Christ on a bike." She sat up and reached a hand to her leg. It was bound and splinted, yet hurt like hell.

"Here." Scud passed her a coffee loaded with sugar for the shock. "Blade was impressed. You didn't even scream."

"Really? I thought I heard something."

"Nah, that was me shouting a bit. I panicked a little when your eyes rolled back in your freakin' skull. And you scratched me a little." He said, showing her his grazed arm. She stared at his face. Despite being a bit rough and a little unshaved, he was cute, his face framed with wavy dark hair. He stared at her back, a little confusion written on his face, along with scared fascination. She looked away, knowing he was staring at her eyes. She wriggled away from his grasp.

"How is she?" Came Blade's voice from across the room.

"I'm cool. Thanks for helping me. I'd better ring Alec and let him know I'm Ok."

"Alec?" Said Scud, his face falling.

"He's my friend. A good friend. He's thirty. And gay." She added. Scud brightened a little. "Do you have a phone I can use?"

With a sharp look from Blade, Scud reluctantly handed over his mobile. Mute grimaced at the ridiculous amount of girls in bikinis on the home screen and tapped in a number. A man's voice answered. Scud leaned in a little.

"Hey, Alec. I'm fine, I'm fine. Just a broken leg. I'm with Blade. I'm safe, don't worry, I'll come see you at some point tomorrow. Keep yourself safe."

Scud could just about hear a "take care, Kitten" before the line went dead. Mute sighed. "He worries. I refuse to live with him, see. I hate burdening him. So he panics whenever I don't turn up for more than twenty-four hours."

"As he should. What were you doing out alone?" Blade asked sharply.

"I went fishin'." Mute grinned, and then laughed. "Seriously, though, Blade. I'm a hunter, like you. I have backup, like you. I'm something of a freak, if you don't mind me saying, like you. Tonight was a one-off. I've never been beaten up like that before. Usually I can gut a vamp in one second flat. I'm loyal. More loyal than any human you'll come across- no offence, Scud."

"None taken." Scud winked.

"We'll do better if we stick together. Just give me a chance." She was trying to keep her voice from pleading.

"How old are you?"

"Twenty-three. I stopped aging when I was nineteen, when my body reached its prime." Blade's lips pulled back a little. Mute's did too, a reaction whenever she felt threatened.

"You sound a hell of a lot like a suckhead to me."

"I'M NOT." Mute raised her voice a little. "I don't know what I am. Yes, I'm a bit like a vamp. I don't age, I'm strong, and I heal fast. But I don't have a single weakness of theirs, not even the thirst. And I have my humanity." She said. "Do you?"

Blade ignored her, rubbing the bridge of his nose. He walked over to her and whipped of his glasses. She stared into unfathomable brown eyes.

"Double cross me, and your freaky ass is mine."

Mute punched the air.

"That means yes in grumpy language! Trust me, I won't let you down. Ever. My team is my family." Suddenly, she yawned, exhausted. Without another word she laid her head on Scud's lap and slept. Scud gently rolled up his jumper that was laid over a chair and slipped it under her head.

"I'm gonna go get some shut-eye too, B. See you whenever." He sloped off. Blade slipped his glasses back on and turned to leave. He took one last look at the sleeping girl and laid his coat over her. She slept peacefully, unaware that two weeks later, her old life would unravel, leaving Blade as her only anchor to the cold world she lived in.

****************************************

"Mute, no heroics, I mean it!" Blade said sharply over the earpiece. "I know he's your friend, but we don't know what we're dealing with!"

Mute ignored him and sped towards the burning building. It had once been a bookshop-now it was a towering inferno. The fire service hadn't arrived yet, but people were crowding around already, staring. She shoved passed them all. Somebody tried to stop her but she spun around and snarled. They backed away.

She crashed through the door and ran through the smoke, coughing wildly. She leapt over the counter into the back room.

"Alec!" she screamed. A tall, thin man with blonde hair was pinned to the wall like a butterfly. A long sword held him against the blackened wallpaper, as well as three of his own stakes. He slumped over it, sightless eyes staring at the floor, blood dripping from his mouth. His room was overturned, his weapons taken, his beloved books burning. Sobbing, she let him down and threw him over her shoulder. With a crash the front entrance was blocked by falling debris, but she got out fairly easily the back way. She ran from the tower of smoke through the back streets and laid Alec on the floor, eyes streaming. She closed his eyes gently then curled up beside him, rocking back and forth. She suddenly realised she was still holding the sword that had killed her beloved friend. She smashed the blade against a wall, and when it wouldn't break, threw it away. She started kicking and hitting out and dumpsters and dustbins, screaming in rage. She stopped dead, catching something on the wind.

It was very, very far away, whatever it was. But it definitely caught her attention. It was like vampire, but not vampire. It was far more putrid. Far sharper.

It smelt _wrong._

She lost the scent when Blade distracted her. He came running down the nearest alley, and stopped when he saw Alec. Was it just her, or did his face cloud with sorrow for a moment? Suddenly, she didn't care. She ran over and threw herself into his arms, sobbing against his shoulder. He was shocked for a moment. Then he slowly put his strong arms around her and held her, feeling her scrawny body racked with painful sobs.

Each cry of anguish was a knife to his previously stone-cold heart.


	2. Chapter 2 New Beginnings

Hey guys. Here's the second chapter. Remember, if you are offended by a bit of bad language, don't read. I did rate it.

Beware of spoilers if you plan to watch the movie.

Much love.

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Let the old out, let the new in. The new reality. Alec was dead; his death had been one of two things- a warning, or revenge.

A warning to Mute now that she was with Blade, or revenge for the countless dozens of vampires she and Alec had killed together. Blade had said later that Alec had shot himself before the vampires got to him. He hadn't suffered much.

Alec was like that. Proud of his humanity. It was the only thing he was never willing to sacrifice.

God, what was happening to her? Her blood boiled like fire. She swung her sword and sliced through another training dummy. The stuffing oozed out of the slice in its stomach, the crude cartoon face drawn on with permanent marker snarled at her. She kicked the head off its shoulders, and it bounced off the walls of the sparring room. She slid to the floor and held her head in her hands. What was _happening? _One and a half months after Alec's death and all she could think about was her next kill. Damn it, the hate she had felt for vampires before had nothing on now. With a yell and a slash she leapt to her feet and another dummy was split in half.

Scud walked in, and Mute spun around, letting loose one of the three throwing knives at her belt. It spun over and over and thudded into the doorway.

"Fuck OFF!" she screamed at him. "Leave me ALONE!"

In the before Alec's death, there had been sparks between her and Scud. They messed about like children, but there was a depth to the contact, the playfights, the smiles. The day before the fire, there was even a kiss.

Maybe that was it. Maybe Alec's death was a reminder to her that she was meant for the fight, the scream of a struck vampire, the soothing smoulder of a good pile of ash. Nothing else could distract her from that. It was all she was good for. "Go on, get OUT!" she yelled at Scud, hating the pitying look on his face. He felt _sorry _for her, damn him. Ignoring her yells he walked in and put his arms around her. Instantly she melted in his arms, her head full of his comforting smell. "It's not fair." She whimpered, her sword clattering to the floor. He kissed her gently.

"Listen, go out and shred some vamps, bring back some coffee, and we'll spend the rest of the night in, eh? Blade's out. Just you and me tonight." He said softly.

"Will you be ok?" Mute sniffled.

"I'll be fine. Don't be long." He ruffled her hair and walked her to the door. He kissed her again, and watched her go. "Mute?" He said. She turned around. The streetlamp outside flickered. "I've missed you."

An hour later, Scud sat with a bottle in his hand, listening to music, when the power went out. He raced over to the CCTV but the screens came up blank. He breathed hurriedly, sweat beading on his forehead. He backed away from the screens, and bumped into something. A strong, cold hand clamped over his mouth.

"Joshua." A sibilant voice hissed in his ear. "I have a proposition for you." Scud whipped round and sprayed garlic spray into the face of his attacker. In the gloom he could see it was a tall, blonde man, but the guy didn't even flinch, just raised a handkerchief and wiped his face. "I'm human, you little fool. Now listen to me very carefully…" Scud lowered his fist cautiously as the man began to talk.

********************************************

"Lock up your daughters, boys and girls, the Dark Knight returns." Scud announced. Mute looked up from repairing her motorcycle and grinned impishly. Blade had returned indeed, but she felt something different on the air than the other times he had come back. Relief, hope and fear. Despite his expressionless demeanour, Mute could read any person like a book, sometimes even Blade, although it was obviously harder than the average human or vamp. Difficult or no, she could tell what the change in mood was about. _He's found him. _Her heart soared. She had only met Whistler four times, but she liked him an awful lot. He seemed to think she was worth something. Scud did too, but he was snogging her, so that didn't count. Blade probably did, but didn't show it much. Besides, it had been Whistler who got her off her arse and made her do something useful.

Sure enough, Blade showed them the old man, trussed up and shoved in the boot of the car.

"You found him. But you didn't kill him." Scud stated.

"What you tie him up for, bro? He's out of it." Mute sighed. Blade showed his teeth a little, to which kid neither of them knew, but they decided to shut up. Blade and Scud hauled the quietly groaning Whistler into a room guarded by a heavy-duty metal door. Mute waited outside the cell for Scud to come out, and come out he did, looking sheepish like he always did when Blade had just scolded or threatened him. Mute sat on a table, swinging her legs and chewing gum. She blew a bubble, popped it, and crammed the sticky wad back in her mouth. "What did you do?"

"I told B that he should put the old fucker out of his misery."

"Cristo en una bici, Scud!" Mute moaned, putting her head in her hands. "I'm surprised he didn't thump you one!"

"What? I'm allowed to express my opinion, aren't I?" He said, throwing up his arms in defence.

"There is a very thin line between doing that and being a total wanker, and you just crossed it. You need to show some more respect. Whistler's been doing this longer than Blade, longer than me, definitely longer than you. He raised Blade and equipped me. Blade will give him the cure, and everything'll be ok." Said Mute determinedly.

"I'm not so sure."

"You're a grease monkey, Scud. Not a biologist. The cure's never let anyone down."

"I know, I've just got a bad-"

Blade strode from the cell, shutting the door behind him.

"How is he?" Asked Mute. Blade ignored her and ascended the metal stairs to his living quarters, or, as Mute called it, "Blade's bolthole." She sighed, and hopped off the table, stretching. She yawned, and tottered off to her hammock, sticking her gum into the palm of Scud's hand and kissing him on the cheek. "See you tomorrow, Mr Anxiety."

"Can't I sleep with you tonight?" He said, grabbing her arm. She raised an eyebrow.

"Not like that. I just mean sleeping."

"I sleep in a hammock, Scudley." Said Mute, using the nickname she reserved for when Scud was being particularly blonde.

"Then share the bed in my van."

"Scud, I'm not sure what standards you set with your other girlfriends, but I don't go to bed with guys on the two-month anniversary of us meeting each other."

"Technically we've known each other for about a year."

"Bugger off. I'm tired."

"I swear I won't pull a fast one. I just don't want to be alone." His face drooped a little when he saw Mute's face. "You're gonna laugh at me." she shook her head.

"No, I'm not, I swear. I just… never thought of you like that. You're so… pigheaded sometimes. It just didn't cross my mind." Scud looked at her funny.

"I thought you had this thing where you could read people really easy!" they started walking from the workshop and climbed into Scud's van. Scud pulled the bed down from the wall and they sat on it. Scud laid his head in her lap.

"I don't know what the deal is with you, Scud. My head is so full of… other stuff when I'm around you I can't think of much else. Can I tell you a secret?"

"Go on then." Scud whispered as she played with his hair.

"Only Whistler knows this. I think Blade guesses, but he's never said anything. But before Whistler found me I was a rock-bottom druggie, and I always had a bottle of vodka in my hand." Scud stared up at her, shocked. Mute smiled wryly. "It's true. Your little three-joints-a-day thing you've got going on is nothing compared to what I put in my body. It might not have caused any lasting damage, because of my healing factor, but it was hardly a good life. Like I told you before, I don't know where or what I was prior to around five years old, but my earliest memories are streets, care homes, running away, more streets. When I was about ten, my body started changing. Relying on the crappy care system was no longer an option. I was strong, fast, freaky- looking. I could threaten people until they'd give me the stuff I needed." She shrugged. "It seems shocking to someone else, but you've been there, Scud. You know how it is." Scud nodded, shuddering a little. "Then Whistler found me. Gave him a bit of a shock, I did- he thought I was a suckhead. When he realised what went down with me he marched me over to some friends of his. They gave me weapons, a credit card, introduced me to someone they knew who would keep an eye on me- Alec. I haven't been in touch with them often; I didn't like their leader much, he was an idiot. But my path has crossed Whistler's a couple of times. He keeps an eye out for me- calls me his charity case. Says it's what he'd want for his own kids- someone to look out for them." She rested her head on the side of the van, looking up through the sunroof. "I don't know what the deal is with you, Scud. Maybe it's my addictive personality. I get hooked on things I probably shouldn't. But I can't read you, and I can't leave you alone. And it scares me a bit."

Scud looked up at her. Then his forehead furrowed. "What?" Mute asked.

"You're wearing your contacts. I thought they pissed you off."  
"They do. It's just my normal eyes seem to freak you out a bit."

"Take them out, Mute. Nothing about you could stop me wanting to-" Mute clamped a hand over his mouth. "Mrmmph you." He grinned through her hand.

"I'm going to wash that mouth of yours out with soap." She scolded. He held her hand and kissed her palm.

"I mean it. Every part of you is beautiful. You could just do with wearing more black leather."

"What the- Scud, you're such a chauvinistic pig!" She growled at him. She rubbed her eyes, removing the contacts, and put them in their little case. Scud sat up.

"So, you're staying?" His face lit up. Mute looked up through the roof, rubbed her sore, tired eyes, and then looked at him.

"Yeah. Ok. I'm staying." They curled up together on the small bed, Mute's face buried in Scud's neck. She began tracing his chest with a finger. "Scud…?"

"Yeah."

"You're right. We have known each other for a year." She whispered. He looked down at her. She sat up, pulling him up with her, and kissed him. He responded instantly, biting gently on her bottom lip. She tangled her fingers in his long hair and he reached down to slip off her t-shirt.

Both Scud and Mute slept well that night.

As the sun rose and streamed through the windo, Whistler slowly opened his eyes.


	3. Chapter 3 Allys

Chapter 3 boys and girls. Love you all.

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Mute sat up, stretching. She yawned, nudging Scud a little by accident. He mumbled sleepily, but didn't wake. He looked innocent when he slept. Her heart melted as she watched him for a while. Then she jolted, remembering.

Whistler!

She carefully got up, tucking Scud back in. It was still early. She slipped into her jeans, but couldn't find her t-shirt, so she grabbed one of Scud's instead. Bare feet making no sound, she walked over to the workshop, punched in the code number and entered. Blade was already sitting in a chair,. Fiddling with sharp things.

"Sleep well last night?" He asked. _Oh shit._

"Uh, yeah." She fiddled with the hem of Scud's t-shirt. Blade removed his sunglasses and looked at her sceptically.

"I don't really care who you mess around with, but I'm going to warn you against Scud." He said. Mute frowned at him.

"If you don't care, carry on not caring." Then she slapped her forehead. _Bollocks!_

"I see. So you ARE messing around with him."

"Piss off." She walked over to the food fridge and downed a carton of milk. They had run out of Count Chocula.

"All I'm saying is-"

"LALALALA." Mute sang, hands over ears. Blade raised an eyebrow and put his shades back on. It was immature, but she really didn't want to hear Blade's "words of wisdom." It pissed her off that he acted like he didn't care, but tried to be controlling at the same time. "How's the old man?"

"Fine. It worked. He's just cleaning himself up." Mute grinned.

"Scud owes me five dollars."

Later that day Scud and Mute were working. Scud was doing his thing with the car while Mute was cleaning up her motorbike. Blade walked in, followed by Whistler. "Whistler!" Mute hollered. She grabbed his hand and slapped his shoulder. "Hey man, I haven't seen you in ages!" Whistler smiled.

"Easy there, kiddo. I'm human again."

"Oops, sorry." Mute grinned sheepishly. "So how-" Scud coughed behind her. "Oh, sorry. Whistler, this is... my... best friend, Scud."

"Best friend, huh." Whistler raised his eyebrows at her. Scud cut in, offering his hand. Whistler shook it briefly.

"Whistler, nice to finally meet ya. I've heard a lot about you man. Name's Josh. You can call me Scud though, everybody does." He turned to the TV and stood transfixed by the PowerPuff Girls for a few seconds. Whistler inspected the car engine Scud had just had his hands in.

"Tell me, Skid-" He began. Scud's brow wrinkled.

"Nah, man, it's Scud. Ya know, like Stud?"

"Whatever. What're ya doing here?"

"You mean the pimp-mobile? Gave it a little after-market modification, nitro oxide, shit like that."

"I see, you gave it a more aggressive profile ramp?"

"Yeah, the whole package'll crank that betty up to around, maybe 300 horsepower!"

"And you'll burn the damn thing out before your next oil change! Where'd yea' dig up this shit bird?" Whistler asked Blade. Scud moved forward to defend himself.

"What the fuck's-" He began, but Mute stepped between them.

"Chill out, the pair of you!" She said angrily. "Scud, keep a lid on it. Whistler, don't talk to him like that."

"Don't talk to him like what? I've been suckin' blood clots for 2 damn years, and I come back to find some jerk off fucking with my life's work!!!"

"Hey, we risked our whole operation to save your puckered ass!" Yelled Scud, riled.

"OUR OPERATION?" Hollered Whistler, advancing on Scud. "I built this operation you asswipe!" Suddenly, the alarms went off and the lights went out. There was an intruder. Instantly everyone snapped into action, the argument forgotten.

"Human?" asked Blade. Scud ran to the CCTV.

"Body temperature fifty, I would guess suckheads." Suddenly the image went bright white and disappeared.

"They've taken the security system out with magnesium flares. Mute, go fix the lights." Mute ran as fast as she could to the circuit box. The wires had been cut right through. The backup lights were back with Scud and Whistler.

"Shit." She muttered. Suddenly she heard gunshot and sped towards the source. Blade fought neck-and-neck with a vampire suited up, not revealing any features. She and her partner were protected against the blazing godlights by the black suits. She snarled and leapt on to the suited male, knocking him over. She twisted his arms behind his back painfully. He tried to kick out but she put her knee in the small of his back.

"Let me know if this hurts, suckhead!" She snarled, raising a stake. Suddenly she looked up and saw Blade and the woman locked in a checkmate. The guy beneath her foot yelled something out in vampire gibberish. The woman sheathed her sword and stepped back. Blade nodded at Mute and she released her quarry. He hissed at her through his mask, and she stuck her middle finger up.

"My name is Asad." Gasped the man, removing his mask. He was brown-skinned with a carefully trimmed beard. "This is Nyssa." He gestured to the woman who revealed her face. She had long black hair and a delicate, beautiful face. "We represent the ruling body of the vampire nation, and we've come to offer you a truce."

"For years you have been our most feared enemy, but now there's something else lose on the streets. something worse than you." Said Nyssa.

"Ooh. Sounds interesting." Grinned Mute. "How worse?" The vampires ignored her.

"Come with us to see our master. He will fill you in." Asad told Blade.

"Fuck that!" Said Mute. Finally the vamps turned and stared. "How dumb do you think we are?"

Apparently, they were very dumb.

Half an hour later Mute sat leaning against Scud in the helicopter. What they were doing was against her better judgement, but no way on god's earth was she letting the "boys" go on their own. That wouldn't be the best idea.

"People talk of Blade as the bogeyman. Frankly I'm disappointed." Nyssa drawled. Scud grinned.

"Ya hear that B? She's _disappointed!" _He said.

"Why's that?" Mute asked.

"Because he agreed to come alone so quickly." This irritated Mute- Blade had her, he had hardly come unguarded.

"C'mon B, show her. Pretty please?" Scud asked, his hands begging. Blade pulled back his coat, revealing rows of explosives.

"Zintacs." Blade smiled slightly.

"Enough explosives to level a city block!" Scud said gleefully. "You still disappointed?" Nyssa said nothing. Mute gave her a sharp-toothed grin.

The vampire stronghold was heavily guarded, codes, guards and colossal doors barred the way to any intruder. Blade looked at Mute, who seemed sedate, but her yellow eyes flicked from corner to corner.

"It's ok." He murmured.

"Like shit it is."

"Listen, if the worst comes to the worst, I know you'll be able to get out."

"Without you? I'd rather blow up, to be honest."

"Don't." Blade hissed. Their conversation was cut off as they entered a large room guarded by a drawbridge- style door.

"Bloody hell. It's like Dracula's bedroom in here." Mute murmured to Scud. He smiled nervously.

"This is Overlord Damaskinos." Asad introduced a wizened, bald old man, white was a sheet, bent over a book. He refused to acknowledge them at first, but finally turned.

"Greetings, Daywalker. It has been said be proud of your enemy and enjoy his success. In that regard, I should thank you."

"Why?" asked Mute sharply. Blade looked at her sharply, but Damaskinos smiled. It was a smile that made him look not unlike a snake.

"Ah, young and angry. Watch that one, Daywalker. As I said, we have something to thank you for."

"And what's that?" Said Blade calmly.

"Eliminating Deacon Frost. You did us a favour. Carter Kounan." A familiar, sly and slimy-looking appeared. He shook Blade's hand and Blade saw the tattoo on his hand.

"You're human?"

"Barely. I'm a lawyer."

"As you may know, vampirism is an arable virus, carried in the saliva of predators. Within 72 hours it is passed through the human bloodstream, creating new parasitic organs." Damaskinos intoned. Mute sensed the pleasantries were over.

"Like cancer." Blade hissed.

"Cancer with a purpose." Damaskinos said indifferently.

"Unfortunately, viruses evolve too. We've encountered a new one and named it the reaper strain. And like any good pathogen it appears through a founded carrier." He showed a piece of CCTV footage. "There. Jared Nomac."

"Holy shit." Mute whispered as the man tore apart a vampire, blood pouring everywhere. He turned his head to the camera.

"Vampires." He hissed. "I hate Vampires."

"Born a vampire, yet an anomaly like you. He feeds not only on humans but vampires as well."

"Looks like he was doing me a favour." Blade raised an eyebrow.

"You don't understand. His victims don't die, they change. Into more reapers."

"So you want us to hunt them." Blade finished, his voice taking a mocking edge.

"You've got to understand these things are like crack addicts, they need to feed daily. Nomak's been out for 72 hours. By our estimates there's already a dozen reapers, there'll be hundreds before the weeks out, thousands in a matter of months. You do the math."

"And who do you think they'll turn to once we're gone? Your precious humans. Not one will be left." Damaskinos gripped the side of the table. Mute knew he was probably used to getting what he wanted.

"Fair do's. I'm in." Mute grinned lopsidedly. Blade gave her another warning look.

"We've spent two years training a tactical unit, the Blood Pack. We want you to lead them." Nyssa told Blade. Mute snorted with laughter. "What's so funny?" asked Nyssa sharply. Mute ignored her.

"What have they been training for?" Blade asked. Nyssa smiled.

"To kill you."


	4. Chapter 4 Restraint

Hey, Mute Fans! Chapter 4 here!

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It was three o'clock in the morning back at the workshop.

"Well, it's a plan." Said Blade as he, Scud, Whistler and Mute began stocking themselves to bursting with several shiny, sharp things.

"What do you really think?" Asked Whistler.

"They're gonna fuck us the first chance they get."

"Duh, no shit!" Mute sighed. "I don't know about this Blade. They're scared now, but once we've got rid of this Nomac fucker…"

"I KNOW, Mute." Blade rolled his eyes behind his shades.

"So what are we gonna' do?" Scud asked.

"We're gonna' play along for now, they'll take us in deeper than we've ever been. Get a chance to see how their world really ticks." Blade joined Scud by the rail and Mute went off to grab something to eat.

"I've had enough of their world. They're just shitting bricks cuz' they're no longer top of the food chain." Whistler grumbled, walking away. Scud sighed.

"What?" Blade asked irritably.

"I don't know, man. I'm worried about him. You'd better watch him; nobody goes cold turkey from the thirst in just one night." He turned to leave but Blade grabbed his elbow.

"You break her, and I'll have your head on a platter." He growled. Both of them knew what he was talking about.

"I-I… look, B..."

"I mean it. Scram." Blade said, letting him go. Scud considered himself dismissed. He scuttled off to find Mute and scab off her packet of mini Oreos.

Five minutes later Blade and his group assembled. In front of them were a group of six cranky vampires, armed to the teeth. Nyssa spoke.

"Blade, this is The Blood Pack; Lighthammer, Verlaine, Priest, Chupa, Snowman and Reinhart." The one pointed out as Reinhart stepped forward. Mute's lips pulled back in warning, but Blade restrained her with a look.

"Can you blush?" He asked Blade. For some reason the rest of the Pack found this hilarious. A glint came into Blade's eyes.

"Oh, I see. You've been training for two years to take me out. And now here I am- woo, so exciting." Blade shivered mockingly. He pulled a stake. The Blood Pack snarled and trained their guns on him. Mute crouched down, hand on her sword. Then Blade placed the stake to his own chest. "Come on then, what are you waiting for? Adolf here gets the first shot. Why are you looking at her, you need permission?" Blade grinned as Reinhart glanced at Nyssa. The Blood Pack egged Reinhart on.

"Fucking do it!" yelled one of them.

"Maybe you need a bit of incentive." He twirled the stake in his fingers. Reinhart, struggling to watch the spinning silver, was slapped in the face so fast he didn't see it. He stared at Blade. "What, you missed that? Want me to do it again? Ok!" He said. Twirl, twirl, twirl, slap.

Suddenly Reinhart snapped. He lunged at Blade, but his target sidestepped him and twisted his arms behind his back. Reinhart jolted as something was stabbed into the back of his shaved head.

"Now you've got an explosive device stuck to the back of your head. Silver nitrate, rigged to go off is anyone tampers with it. If you so much as look at me wrong…" He threatened, letting the man go. Reinhart fingered the bomb on the back of his scalp. Mute grinned at him, displaying her sharp teeth. He looked at her murderously, which just increased her amusement. "From now on, we work as a unit. You'll be taking orders from me." Said Blade, and gave Mute a look that clearly meant _that means you, too. "_If we want to catch the hunter, we find the prey. I'm talking safehouses, blood banks, anywhere vampires congregate. What's first?" Nyssa and Asad exchanged a look.

"The house of pain." Nyssa replied.

As the vampires were leaving the workshop, Blade and Asad were agreeing on meeting at nightfall. Verlaine passed Mute, curling her lip and hissing quietly. Mute bristled.

"What's the matter, pinky? You wanna take a bite out of me?" She growled, her voice low.

"Little freak." Verlaine snarled.

"That's good; at least I don't look like you, bitch." Mute retorted.

"What you say to her?" Chupa hissed. Lighthammer brandished his club threateningly.

"Go suck on silver, fucktard."

"What's going on?" Asad asked. He and Blade stood watching the tension. Mute's eyes flew to the sword at his waist, and her chest tightened. The symbol on the hilt of the sword, engraved on the handle of Lighthammer's weapon, tattooed on the familiar's hand... she could almost smell the smoke, feel the blood on her hands…

"Mute, what's going on?" asked Blade, sensing something very wrong.

"'I'll tell you what's going on. I'll tell you what's going the FUCK on!" She yelled, her voice raising with every word. Quick as a flash she leapt forward and drew the sword from Asad's belt. Instantly every weapon in the vampire arsenal was trained on her. "Look at this shit, Blade! The symbol! Shall we ask our new buddy's how the exact copy of this symbol was stamped onto the sword that pinned Alec to a fucking wall?" She yelled, her yellow eyes aflame with hate. She turned to Asad.

"Start talking, you fucking murderer." She snarled.

"Mute, that is enough." Blade warned.

"No, it's fucking not!"

"Scud!" Blade called. Mute gripped the sword until her knuckles went white. Nyssa spoke.

"Listen, Mute, anything that happened before MUST be put aside, for all our sakes. You're not a selfish creature."

Suddenly Mute felt arms wrap around her and the smell of weed and petrol filled her head. Despite wanting to tear every suckhead in that little group apart she dropped the sword. It chimed where it hit the floor. She let herself be led away when she heard Chupa snicker behind her back. She spun around and let loose a throwing knife. It missed his head by centimetres. She faced the Blood Pack.

"When this is over I'm going to watch you all die." She hissed.

"C'mon, Mute." Scud muttered, gently guiding her away. He knew he had to get her to the sparring room, and fast. When she was there Mute let loose, and soon there were flecks of stuffing floating around everywhere. She sat on the floor, legs crossed, breathing heavily. "You know, that was impressive that you managed to walk away from that." Scud said, shuffling closer beside her and putting his arms around her.

"It was you." She mumbled. "Your presence calms me." She leant into his shoulder. "And your smell." She added.

"My smell. What do I smell like then?" Scud asked.

"Weed and petrol." Sighed Mute.

"So, you won't smoke it, but you'll sniff it."

"Uh-huh." She mumbled.

"You are a very weird kid."

"Shuttup!" I'm only a year younger than you!"

"Technically you've been nineteen for four years."

"Then technically, you're a cradle-snatcher." Mute pointed out. Scud laughed.

"If you like my smell, have this." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a dark green beanie hat with a smiley face badge pinned onto it. It was Scud's favourite hat.

"But Scudley, your head will get cold!" Said Mute, sniffing it. Her face lit up. It really did smell exactly like him.

"Oh, well." Said Scud gruffly. "Keep it." He jammed it on Mute's head over her eyes and jumped to his feet

"Heeeey!" Mute protested, leaping up. Scud poked her in the stomach and she smacked his head, so he lifted her into a fireman's lift and spun her round... that is, until she reached down and gave him a wedgie. They collapsed on the floor in a heap, laughing. Soon Scud was kissing her lips, her neck, her collarbone...

Blade walked in and they jumped apart.

"Get some sleep." Blade ordered. "And I MEAN sleep."


	5. Chapter 5 The House of Pain

Oh, look, another one :P Chapter 5 comin' atchya.

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"Ew. Skanky." Mute muttered. The tall, neglected building stood in front of them, looming like a monster in the dark. She sniffed the air. "I can smell vampire, all right. Yuck." She said to Blade, pointedly ignoring the Blood Pack.

"Where's the entrance?" Blade asked Nyssa.

"Because of you two we've had to rethink our habits." She said, passing Blade a pair of weird goggles. He looked through them and saw what he couldn't before- a symbol on the wall.

"Nice." He said approvingly. He bent down to Mute. "What do you think?" He asked. Whistler leaned in to listen.

"'Kay, you know the mute, Snowman? He's a bit of a tool; don't worry about him too much. Verlaine and Lighthammer are lovers, so they won't put anything before each other. Priest and Chupa, they're best buddies, but they're loyal to the Pack. Priest is a bighead and Chupa's got a temper like a caged animal. Reinhart is dangerous. He doesn't give a fuck about anyone else but number one. Asad and Nyssa are all about duty, don't forget that. They're the brains there." Blade nodded.

"Nice, kiddo." Said Whistler in approval.

"I try." Said Mute, giving a sharp-toothed grin.

Mute went to help pull weapons out of the back of the van. She accidentally jostled Nyssa, who she gave a look of total undiluted hate.

"Woah there." Nyssa said, putting her hands up. Mute turned back to her job and ignored her. "I'm… sorry. About your friend." Nyssa murmured. Mute dropped the gun she was holding.

"You what?" she asked incredulously.

"You heard." Nyssa replied.

"Yeah, well if you're really feeling remorseful, which I doubt you parasites can, you can do him a favour and concentrate getting rid of Nomac so I can get back to killing you suckheads." Mute spat, picking up the gun and pushing past her.

Inside the safehouse Mute looked around in disgust at the dancing vampires, some moving to the music, some doing bizarre things involving pain. Wrinkling her nose as she passed one individual having his back laid open completely, she spoke to Scud over the communication device.

"Hey, Scud, you should see this, man. It's insane. I think I'm gonna puke."

"Just concentrate on blending in, babes." Scud's worried voice chimed in her ear.

"Music's bloody good though." She murmured, lower this time.

"Look at them." Priest sneered. "Half of these fuckers aren't even purebloods. Why don't we just kill everyone? Just to make sure."

Mute, revolted, moved away through the crowd. The beat of the music changed as she scanned the audience. Suddenly, Asad's voice came in over the 'coms.

"I just saw one, but I lost him."

"I'm going to search the corridors." Mute replied.

"Take Snowman with you." Asad said.

"Aw, WHAT?" Mute complained.

"Do as he says. Be careful." Blade's voice said sternly. Snowman appeared at her side, and didn't look at all happier about it than she did.

"Come on then." She sighed. Suddenly, there was movement at the arch of one of the corridors. Something deathly pale in a hooded cloak glowered at them and disappeared. Mute and Snowman loped through the crowd and down the corridor. Unlike the others, the corridor was dark. Mute held her gun out before her and switched on the filtered UV light. Snowman followed behind her. Suddenly something dropped out of nowhere and landed heavily on Mute. She landed on her back, the reaper sitting on her stomach. It grabbed her face, whacking her head against the floor and turning it to expose her neck, its mouth splitting open in a cavernous pair of mandibles. Suddenly it screeched as its head was removed from its body in a spray of red blood shot with putrid yellow slime. Mute recognised the sour scent she had picked up on the night of Alec's death…

The reaper's body still twitched and jerked, the mandibles opening and snapping shut. Mute trained her UV light on it, snapping open the filter. Slowly the body and head smouldered and shrivelled until it burst into flame and ashed. "Christ." Mute gasped. A hand appeared in front of her as Snowman stared down with unfathomable eyes. She took it and he pulled her up with an iron grip. "Thanks." She whispered. He nodded, his face still unreadable. What Mute had taken for stupidity was just simple concealment of emotions, and a little detachment. She wondered what he was hiding.

Suddenly Asad's voice came in again.

"There are eight, maybe more." He sounded panicked. Mute and Snowman ran to help, and heard Scud's voice.

"Use your UV lights! They can't take the light! If you're under attack, use your lights!" There were screams as Chupa let loose a hail of fire at a snarling reaper, hitting countless vampires along the way. Mute ran through the crowd, knocking over clubgoers as she went. Her sensitive ears picked up a familiar voice screaming among the chaos. One of the Blood Pack was in trouble. Snowman left her, running after a reaper. She followed the scent of Priest until she found him. The reaper had him pinned against a pillar, his head lolling unconscious. The reaper stuck out a long, leech-like tongue and ran it over his bleeding wound, then took him to the floor, tearing mercilessly at his throat. Mute leapt over a groaning Asad and threw all her weight at the reaper, who yelped in surprise and rolled off Priest. It turned on her instead, grabbing her throat and opening its mandibles, its tongue whipping the air. She grabbed a handgun and used the blade to slice into the soft flesh, and the reaper dropped her, shrieking. A UV light beamed out of nowhere and seared the reaper's face. It bounded away.

Coughing from the immense pressure that had constricted her throat, Mute crawled to Priest, who was lying convulsing with pain. He grabbed her hand and moaned.

"You tried." He croaked, not opening his eyes.

"I'm sorry." Mute whispered. Chupa stood over her.

"Help me move him, freak." Chupa hissed.

Half an hour later, Priest was howling in pain.

The Blood Pack had regrouped and they all stood in one room, staring down at the changing vampire.

"Will somebody shut him the fuck up?" Yelled Reinhart.

"Kill me now, Chupa!" Screamed Priest. Mute winced as Priest's fingernails dug into her palm, cutting bone-deep grooves that healed almost instantly but still hurt like hell. Chupa shot him, but he carried on howling. Suddenly his chin split into the fanged mandibles that the reapers possessed. Blade pulled her back so fast she suspected whiplash, wrenching her away from Priest's grasp. Finally Blade slashed open a window and Priest disappeared in a ball of flaming ash as the sunlight streamed upon him.

Scud clattered in, scowling.

"This motherfucker left his post!" He said, pointing to Whistler, who had been watching their backs from a nearby building.

"Ran into a little reaper action myself." He smiled. Chupa bristled.

"Oh, yeah? How little? We lost a man. Priest. Want me to carve his fuckin' name on your chest?"  
"Hey, don't talk to him like that, asshole!" Mute yelled. Chupa swung round, roaring with fury and threw a punch, which Mute sidestepped easily.

"That's enough!" Asad shouted. "Chupa, the girl tried to save Priest's life. You got there too late to see it but it happened." There was a shocked silence. Mute could feel the eyes of everyone in the room trained on her.

"Uh..."

"Hey, there's a reaper trapped near here." Whistler cut in, a little louder than necessary.

"Then I should examine it right away." Agreed Nyssa. Mute sidled up to Whistler while everyone was filing out of the room.

"Cheers, Whistler." She muttered.

"No problem, kiddo. Just don't go out of your way to save any more suckheads. They wouldn't do it for you."

"Open the mouth, Scud."

Scud stared at Nyssa, then at the dead reaper on the table. Finally he looked at Blade, his eyes pleading.

"B, now, come on…" He moaned.

"Sissy!" Blade murmured, a grin on his face. He enjoyed watching Scud squirm. Scud gingerly reached to the reaper's mouth and began to gently ease the mandibles open.

"RAA!" Yelled Mute, shaking his shoulders from behind. Scud screamed like a little girl, did some kind of jerking twist and sank to the floor, hyperventilating. Mute grinned at Blade. "Sorry. Couldn't resist." Blade grinned back.

"Come on, Scud. We don't have all day." Scud got shakily to his feet and pulled open the reaper's mouth. "There's no mandible bone. And these muscles are over-enhanced, allowing for a much stronger bite. Squeeze that tooth, Scud." Scud went green as he squeezed the flesh around one of the fangs. Greenish-yellow liquid oozed and dropped onto Nyssa's gloved finger. She sniffed it. "Neurotoxin. Probably to paralyse their victim while they feed." Mute gasped and held her coat collar against her nose.

"That fucking stinks." She croaked. The smell intensified as the chest was laid open. Reinhart whistled.

"Look at that! The heart is encased in bone!" Nyssa whispered, fascinated.

"Good luck tryin' to get a stake through that!" Whistler remarked.

"Not quite encased, look. There's a weak point to the side." Said Mute. "Note that, boys and girls." Nyssa raised a knife to her finger.

"Cut the legs off a spider and it keeps moving." She said.

"Hey, what are you-" Scud began, but a drop of blood had already dropped onto the innards of the creature. The whole body jerked and moved, and what sounded like snarling came from the stomach of the reaper.

"Brain's dead. Body's still trying to feed." Blade intoned. Mute turned away in disgust. Blade turned to the Blood Pack and arranged to meet at dawn. It would be when the reapers were at their most vulnerable. "And another thing. Don't expect everyone to make it back tomorrow." He ascended the steps to his living quarters. He jerked his head at Mute, who ran after him obediently.

"'Sup, Blade?" She asked. Blade sat on a chair and she plonked herself on the floor, cross-legged, looking up at him like an adoring nursery-school pupil. He took a silent breath. Mute braced herself- he only did that when she was going to be told off.

"Listen, Mute. You've got to start taking better care of yourself. I won't be around forever."

"What do you mean?" Mute asked, her face falling in confusion.

"I mean I won't always be around to save your freaky ass. I'm aging, Mute. You're not. Work it out." Mute's yellow eyes flashed angrily.

"Don't talk like that."

"It needs saying, Mute. You could have become lunch today."

"But I didn't."

"But you could have."

"_But I didn't! _I can take care of myself. Even if I couldn't, you're going to be around for ages yet, 'kay?" Her hands gripped into fists.

"Mute, listen to me!"

"No, you listen!" Mute jumped to her feet. "I've lost the nearest thing I ever had to a father, now you're asking me to discuss losing my br-" She stopped herself, appalled at what she was about to say. Blade hated it when she showed weakness. Affection was definitely weakness. "Anyway, what do you care?" She asked belligerently. Blade's eyes narrowed. He was losing his temper.

"What the hell do you mean?"

"You always do this, treat me like a weapon, a tool, then when I do something of my own accord you get all heavy-handed. What is your problem? Why can't you just decide whether you hate me or not?"

There was a silence. Blade took off his glasses, his eyes unreadable as always.

"Mute. You see Reinhart? Damaskinos? There are a thousand bloodsuckers out there that would give their right ball to get to me, hit me where it hurts. They took Whistler. That was bad enough. But if I showed for one minute, one second, how much you… what you…" He pinched the bridge of his nose. Mute had never seen him look so old. "I'm sorry you feel that way, Mute, but I don't hate you. Absolutely the opposite. I hide it because of your safety. It would drive me insane if anything happened to you. So two things. Hide away what you keep closest, and take better care of yourself. For my sake. Please." He stood up, and suddenly felt two iron-strong, skinny arms around his middle.

"I'll try." She whispered. Blade sighed. That would have to do, he guessed. He ruffled her hair and she let go of him, bouncing away to go and see Scud, a little streak of green beanie hat and blue coat. Blade slipped his shades back on; thanking his lucky stars he didn't have any real siblings.

That really would be too much.


	6. Chapter 6 Falling

Chapter SIX YAY. I kinda realised what looks like decent paragraph separation on Microsoft word doesn't separate time properly on FF, it just looks like part of the previous paragraph. Sorry, guys, I'll try harder to make this story coherent.

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"Ooh. What's that?" Mute said, linking her arms around Scud's neck as he packed some round little balls into a box.

"These, my little vixen, are UV grenades." He replied, kissing her chin.

"No way! You are a genius." She said, kissing him back.

"I know. I'm fantastic, aren't I?

"Ok, enough ego-boosting." Said Mute as the Blood pack started arriving, glowering as always. Everyone was getting kitted up. Mute passed around a set of leather neck guards. "Right, from what I can tell, these buggers go straight for the jugular in a surprise attack. If you get caught off-guard, these will protect you long enough for you to fight back." Asad, Nyssa and Snowman took one each. The rest sneered.

"Stupid freak." Chupa spat.

"It's your neck, big boy. Rather you than me." Mute said dismissively. Scud announced he wasn't accompanying them, on account of being "a lover, not a fighter." Mute rolled her eyes. Suddenly Scud grabbed her and kissed her roughly.

"Oh, please." Reinhart groaned. He was ignored.

"I love you." Whispered Scud, hands on her hips.

"I know. I love you too. No matter what." Said Mute, wrapping her arms around his neck and kissing him again. Behind him, Scud could feel Blade's eyes boring into his back and shivered.

…

"Christ on a bike. What a smell." Mute groaned as they sloshed through the water.

"It's a sewer, dumbass." Chupa grunted.

"I was talking about you." Mute retorted.

"Enough!" Blade said. They split into groups. Mute was lumped with the lovers and Snowman, who she didn't mind so much since the House of Pain incident. She walked ahead a little, checking out a trail of little bones that looked like they belonged to rats. Further and further, until she realised she had left her group behind. She turned back to say something insulting down the tunnel, when she heard a scream. She streaked back to where she was just in time to see Lighthammer, completely "reaperfied", speeding up a ladder behind Verlaine. Mute shouted out, but it was too late. Verlaine pulled open the manhole cover, the sunlight streamed in, and both disappeared. Their ashes floated to settle in the water.

"Verlaine and Lighthammer are down." Said Mute dutifully into the communicator.

"Where's Snowman?" Asad asked sharply.

"I can't… Oh, Christ." Mute moaned. Snowman was slumped against a wall, the neckgaurd torn from his neck and blood seeping from the wound. She knelt down beside him. The Asian vampire's black eyes bored into hers and he nodded weakly. "Come on, man. You're the only one I halfway like, you can't do this to me." Mute whispered. Snowman gripped her arms, his eyes becoming insistent. "Ok." Mute sighed. She supported him, half-dragging him to the pool of sunlight coming from the manhole above. They stepped into the light together. "See you on the other side." Mute whispered as Snowman disintegrated.

…

Mute was pissed off as she splashed through the tunnel. Damn Nomac! Damn him to hell, the infested leech! She hoped to have a good shot at him herself before Blade bumped him off. Asad's voice came in over the communicators.

"Regroup!"

She wandered down endless tunnels before finally she found Whistler's trail. She followed it into a larger chamber, just in time to watch as Chupa smacked Whistler across the face. The old man fell with a splash. Mute snarled in fury and charged the vampire.

"Mute, NO!" Yelled Whistler, but she saw the reapers too late. Driven mad by the pheromone spray Whistler had set off they leapt upon Chupa, and he disappeared beneath them, his screams abruptly cut off. One leapt at Whistler but Mute split it in half from head to foot with a graceful arc of her sword. She grabbed Whistler's arm.

"Let's get out of here, old man." She murmured, pulling Whistler along. They ran together from the chamber before the reapers could stop feeding and pursue them. Soon Whistler bent over, wheezing. Mute could hear the reapers howling down the tunnel like a pack of wolves. "Go, Whistler, go!" She said, pushing Whistler forward.

"Not likely, kiddo." Whistler shot back.

"I mean it, old man! Get moving!" She turned away from him and faced the opening behind them. Suddenly it was a mass of writhing pale bodies as five reapers surged towards her. "COME ON THEN, MOTHERFUCKERS!" She yelled in challenge. She pulled out a UV grenade and rolled it across the floor towards them, firing her gun. Despite the vicious hail of silver they came within a metre of her and the grenade went off, burning hot and bright. The reapers squealed as their skin and flesh was seared away.

"There'll be more." Whistler said, ignoring the frantic shouts of "regroup! Regroup!" ringing in their ears.

"We need to get out, Whistler. The way is completely blocked; I can smell them from here. I don't have any more grenades. We're screwed." Mute was breathing fast.

"Are you suggesting we abandon Blade?"

"NO!" Mute growled.

"Then calm down, kid. Think. Blade taught you better than to panic." He was right. She squeezed her eyes shut in concentration. Then she opened them, reluctantly.

"I have something. But if it doesn't work we're gonna die."

"What is it?"

"A little thing I call Tripwire." Mute brought out two small metal domes from her pockets. "A white-hot UV blade appears in a line between these two domes when you activate them. Theoretically, it should slice right through a vampire… or a reaper. Unfortunately… it's completely untested." Whistler smiled at her.

"So, let's test it."

…

Chupa was in no danger of turning into a reaper. He was stone dead, almost bled dry by the creatures that still scrambled for the best places to suckle from. Suddenly they all looked up.

"Hey, hey, hey! Do I look appetising or what?" Mute yelled, slapping her ass. "Well, come on then! Come get some!" She shouted. The reapers screeched and leapt after her, abandoning their drained meal. She ran down the tunnel, turned, and waited. Just as the first reaper was within leaping distance she pressed the button on the tiny remote. The two domes on either side of the slimy tunnel buzzed and a UV line blazed into existence between them. The first three reapers screamed as they were cleaved in two on the spot. The other four behind them skidded to a halt just in time. "Ah." Mute said, backing away. Maybe they weren't as dumb as was her first assumption. She watched in horror as they crawled under her chest-high Tripwire, grinning hideously in triumph. She bolted down the pipe, looking left and right for Whistler but couldn't find him. He had disappeared. Suddenly she collided with him painfully as he ran at her from the other way round a corner. The reapers leapt at them, then disappeared as a roaring wall of light streamed from the dark.

As quickly as it had come, it was over. Mute and Whistler opened their eyes. Judging by the pile of ash and blackened bone just a foot behind them, the bomb pack had been set of none too soon.

"Christo en una bici, that was close." Mute gasped. Whistler grabbed the rung of a ladder.

"Let's go." He said, beginning to climb. He pushed open the cover above him, then gasped as an electric rod was pressed against his shoulder. "Run, Mute!" He yelled hoarsely as he was pulled away from her grasping hands. Vampires in black suits dropped through the hole. She bolted, but slammed into Reinhart, who swung his fist into her jaw and she fell to the ground. Before she could jump back up a sickening shock shook her body and she was lost to blackness.

…

Pinpoints of light broke through the black. Mute shook her head groggily and jerked awake. She recognised the vampire stronghold and smelt sedatives coming off her skin. She raised her head, seeing Whistler and Scud staring at her. Scud knelt beside her.

"You ok?"

"They got you too?" Mute asked, ignoring his question.

"'Fraid so." He replied. Suddenly Blade snapped awake. He looked around, tensed for a fight, hand reaching for stake.

"They took them. They took everything. All our weapons, even your sword. Someone's been keepin' tabs on us from the inside." Said Whistler.

"They smashed up everything in the workshop." Scud continued.

"We're so screwed, Blade." Mute moaned in Scud's arms. "They've got us." Blade looked at her.

"Defeatist." He muttered.

"They've been lying to us from the start, the reaper strain didn't develop, it was designed." Whistler said.

"What?" Blade growled.

"_Designed. _Nomac told me in the sewers. He let me live."

"Did he? How very generous of him." Damaskinos appeared, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

"I've got a question for you. You wanna tell us how Nomac got this ring?" Whistler asked, rolling something small and gold across the floor. Nyssa picked it up, staring at it. Obviously, she wasn't in on her father's little game.

"It was a gift, of course. From father to son." Damaskinos hissed, as if it was obvious and everyday that he handed out family rings to monsters.

"You sick fuck." Mute snarled. "It's the same all over the place. You suckheads just aren't happy with your lot, are you? Always you have to find some way to be stronger, better, superior. Experimenting and meddling, and look where it gets you."

"That's hypocritical coming from an _experiment _such as yourself. Yes, my dear girl. Almost twenty-five years ago my brother, Derik, wanted to build an army of humanoids that could be used as soldiers against his fellow vampires. Immunity to the genome. A quick temper and loyalty to a cause. Strength and incredible speed. All of these were built into your genes before you were implanted in a human surrogate. There was one thing you and your five fellows could not give him, and that was advanced growth. He was not willing to wait decades for his soldiers to grow. Five years after the birth of his soldiers, he… terminated the program." Damaskinos leered. "He was never a patient one. Curse his ashes."

"Then how come I'm still alive?" Mute shook with fury.

"Rumour has it that one surrogate mother saved a child and released it. It seems those rumours were true, though no doubt the human was killed. Humans can be so… maternal. It's a terrible weakness." He said, and walked over to a large container. It held hundreds of small cases. Mute squinted her eyes and saw with a shock what was encased within each case. Embryos. Damaskinos picked one like fruit off a tree and studied it. "I set my sights on improving the vampire race. Nomac was the first, a failure. But I managed to create a being with immunities to silver and garlic. Soon, even sunlight… A whole new race of pure vampires, begotten from my own flesh." he sighed almost dreamily. Nyssa stormed off, and Damaskinos left.

"I thought he'd never leave." Said Reinhart once he had gone. He lifted a stake gun and fired a stake into Blade's thigh. "The wolf has lain with the sheep too long." Mute was vaguely aware of Scud standing up and turning away, but she ignored him, snarling like an animal at Reinhart, Blade's pain infuriating her.

"Reinhart… You can kiss your ass goodbye!" hissed Blade through the pain. He drew the detonator and pressed a button. There were a series of beeps from the bomb on the back of Reinhart's head. He raised a hand to it, a horrified look on his face.

Nothing happened.

There was a sniggering sound, and then Scud turned.

"Aw, man, I'm sorry." He giggled. He walked over to Blade. "Ya wasting your time, B. Bomb's a dud. It was never meant to explode, it was just meant to make you feel in control." Reinhart tore the bomb from his scalp.

"Much better." He grinned.

Mute's vision had started to go funny. She froze where she was kneeling, but couldn't help swaying slightly. All the sounds entering her traumatised mind were muffled and distant.

"Check this out." Said Scud, still talking to Blade. He pulled down his bottom lip, revealing a mark. "I'm one of Damaskinos's familiars!" Mute stared at the mark. The same mark that was engraved on the sword that killed Alec was now branded onto the person she loved. Her eyes watered, but not from tears. Simply because she had not closed her eyes for ages. She blinked, hard, like she was trying to wake from a dream.

A nightmare.

"Damaskinos needed me to make sure you got Nomac. You see, the old prick, Whistler, was just a diversion." Scud went on. "You-"

"Josh?" It was barely a whisper, but Scud jerked at the sound of his real name. Mute waited for him to laugh in her face, tell her he had strung her along all the time, that it was all a lie.

But he could do worse.

He knelt in front of her, pushing back a strand of black-and-purple hair. "Mute, sweetheart." He cooed. "Join me. Be a good girl, do what Damaskinos says. We'll be together… forever if I get my way." His chocolate-brown eyes stared into hers, tearing at her heart. He knew how to twitch her strings. "Do what you were born for, Mute. Fight for the vampires. Help that Nosferatu wannabe find what he's looking for. Then it'll be just you and me, baby. As for Blade, You're just a weapon to him. Leave him behind, Mute. He pulls you back from what you can really be." Mute looked down, then raised her head again, her yellow eyes blazing.

"Never. Never in a million years. I was born to fight, but I choose what I fight for, and I chose Blade. Did you forget completely what I said? My team is my family. And that is something I'll never turn my back on. Ever." Scud grabbed her arms and shook her slightly, his tone desperate.

"You promised. You said no matter what. You _said-"_

"I said that I loved you, Scud. I never said I'd follow you into hell."

Scud's face turned from absolute devastation to a mask of indifference. He stood up.

"Well. At least I got a fuck out of you." He sneered.

"That you did." Murmured Mute, not looking up. Scud smacked her across the face. The back of his hand, still clutching the "bomb", struck her cheekbone. Although he was human, it still stung her worse than anything that had ever hit her. Blade hissed in warning. Scud ignored him.

"Well, looks like Damaskinos is gonna have to pull out every strand of your DNA by force, then. He'll make his army of Daywalkers. And when that happens, I'd rather be a pet than cattle, know what I'm saying, B?" Scud said, turning away from Mute. "Thing is, you may be fast, you may be strong and all that other bullshit, but these two are your only real weakness. In the end, you're just too _human!"_ Scud took a slight run-up before smashing his fist into Whistler's face.

"FUCK YOU!" Screamed Mute. Scud just laughed and hit the old man again. He turned to Blade.

"So. What do you think of that, man?" Scud grinned. Blade, sweating with the pain in his leg, glared at Scud.

"Two things. One, I've been on to you since the day they turned you. Two…" He raised the detonator. "It wasn't a dud."

Before he had even pushed the button Mute was on her feet, and before anyone could blink the bomb was spinning across the floor. Scud was knocked to the ground as it exploded two metres away. The shockwaves hit him, but he was unhurt. Mute, lying on top of him, was not. He could smell the blood, oozing from the huge burn wound in her back. He sat up, his arms an awkward cradle around Mute's shoulders.

"Mute?" He whispered. She didn't move. Suddenly she was torn from him and rough hands dragged him to his feet. Reinhart tutted with contempt.

"Take him away." He nodded to the handful of guards who were vampires and not human familiars. "Bleed him dry. Break his neck. Whatever. Just get him out of my sight."

"Reinhart… no, come on man… you promised…"

"And you promised you would recruit the freak. Make her into a soldier. You failed." Said Reinhart. He watched as Scud was dragged away, kicking and screaming. Mute opened her eyes and pushed herself up weakly.

"No…" She murmured.

"MUUUTE!" wailed Scud. He was dragged through a pair of doors and he and his captors disappeared. There was one final shriek. Then all was quiet.

The smell of blood reached them.

"Alright, take them down!" Mute was dragged to her feet and pulled away from Blade. The guards advanced on him, electric rods running vicious currents through Blade's body. He gasped and went under.

"LET GO OF ME!" Mute howled, hitting out, but the sedatives in her blood made her feel dizzy and sick. The room spun as she was hauled off, separated from Blade and Whistler. She struggled and felt the jolting pain of a taser at her shoulder.

"Blade…" She croaked, before mercifully her tormented mind shut down.


	7. Chapter 7 Family Matters

Chapter 7. Nearly at the end now, guys. I re-watched Blade 2. R&R. Love you all.

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Mute was surprised she wasn't lighting up like a bulb, the amount of electric currents that had gone her recently. Her eyelids fluttered open. She was chained to the wall of a small cell. In front of her was a monitor screen. She tried her binds, but they were solid titanium, no way was she breaking out of that in a hurry. She growled in frustration. Damaskinos entered.

"Hello, little niece." He whispered. "Be content in the fact that, despite the fact you will not live to see the sunrise- let alone the eternity your genes promise you- you are helping a good cause."

"No, I'm aiding a fucking maniac. However, that certain fucking maniac won't live long enough to carry out his stupid plans." Mute snarled. "You're fucking with the big boys here, baldilocks. You're not walking away from this alive. Even if Blade doesn't kill you, your bouncing boy will tear your throat out pretty soon." Damaskinos shrugged.

"That's debateable. However, sit back and enjoy the show. I'll come for you later once I have taken care of a… family matter." He switched on the monitor with a long, white finger. The screen flickered and came on. It showed a large metal table, covered with holes.

"Uh?" Grunted Mute, confused, but Damaskinos had already left. She watched as Kounan, the slimy familiar, came onto the screen. He tapped a small board. Spikes shot up from the holes on the table, and then disappeared. Mute gasped as Blade was lowered onto the table.

Oh, god. Please, no.

The familiar was saying something, but there were no speakers. Mute watched in horror as he tapped the board again and Blade's face screwed up in agony. Spikes sliced up through his wrists and thighs.

No, no, no! Not Blade too. Everyone around her was disappearing, one by one. Her face contorted with pain and tears welled in her eyes. Kounan bent down and more words were said. Mute clenched her fists, her body burning to wrench Kounan's head off his neck. Suddenly alarms sounded. Mute could guess what that meant.

Nomac.

She struggled against her binds again, only to graze the huge wound in her back painfully. It was only just beginning to heal, probably to do with the sedatives slowing her system down. Suddenly, there was a clatter, and from the grate beneath her Whistler appeared. He climbed out of the floor. Mute grinned at him, wiping her tears away on her shoulder quickly so he wouldn't see. "There are cooler ways to rescue somebody, ya know." She commented as Whistler tugged at her binds.

"You're gonna have to break these, Mute." He grunted.

"I can't…"

"Yes you can. You're stronger than you think. Try." Mute tugged at the binds. Nothing happened. She strained and strained until finally the rings around her wrists broke and she fell forward slightly. Whistler caught her before she could snap her ankles, which were also bound. With more grinding effort Mute was completely free. She shook herself and stretched. Whistler handed Mute her sword.

"Right. Let's go kick some ass."

"No, Mute. I need you to go and find anything Nomac's fed on, and kill it. Nomac and Reinhart will be dealt with." Mute stared at him. He was trying to protect her.

"But I-"

"Don't argue, Mute!" Whistler shook her. "We don't have time. Can you break out of that?" He asked, pointing to the door. She nodded dumbly. "Then go." Mute grasped him in a rib-shattering hug.

"Take care of yourself."

Then she was gone, kicking down the metal door and leaping over it.

…

Mute followed the trail of bodies, listening to each one as she passed it. She was surprised. Not one had Nomac bitten. Each of them was devoid of a heartbeat. Why wasn't he feeding, creating more reapers, rebuilding his army? Perhaps the whole world-domination thing wasn't what he wanted. What he wanted was revenge on his so-called father.

She rounded a corner and saw a pile of bodies. Guards in black suits, all limp and pathetic, piled high. And there, on the top of the pile, was Nomac. He threw aside an unmasked guard and roared. He had been feeding, but he had bled the guard dry. There would be no reapers created. Nomac turned to her, closing his mandibles. She drew her sword. "Hey there. Who's a pretty boy, then?" Mute grinned fiercely. Nomac leapt upon her, driving her back. He threw punches with deadly aim, but for every hit she took Mute made him pay for it. She grabbed his head and smashed it across her knee, hearing the satisfying crunch of bone. He yelled and threw his arms around her chest, constricting until she heard ribs snap. He threw her to the floor and she lay, coughing up blood. He turned to leave her. "Get back here!" He stopped. "I'm not finished with you yet!" Snarled Mute. She gripped her sword and got unsteadily to her feet. Nomac turned and stared at her.

"You mean to defeat me, little cousin?"

"Don't call me that. I wouldn't begrudge you your revenge, Nomac. But I have a duty." She swayed unsteadily on her feet. "Now come back so I can kill you, motherfucker."

Nomac flew at her, knocking her to the floor.

"I will not kill you tonight. You are so self-destructive you will kill yourself, in time. Trust. Love. These things are the things you will fall to. You have already begun to destroy yourself." Mute hissed, fighting against the hands that held her down stronger than any metal. "Take my advice. Close your heart now, before it is too late. Especially against the likes of the Daywalker… although soon, he will hardly be an issue anymore." He grabbed her sword, thrusting it into her side. She howled as he grabbed a handful of her hair and slammed her head against the cold, hard floor. Her skull cracked a little, sending arrows of pain through her head. Stars burst in front of her eyes and Nomac left her, groaning in a pool of her own blood.

…

It was a while before Mute's much-abused body could allow her to get shakily to her feet. Whistler appeared by her side just as her knees gave way. He caught her and held her up as she pulled the sword from her side, gasping. They passed body after body before reaching the inner room where they had first met Damaskinos. The blood pool bubbled quietly, the smell of it sickening Mute as they reached the elevator.

They passed Damaskinos first, frozen and pale in a pool of green slime. Then his failed experiment, Nomac, now just a pile of ash and bones, smouldering gently. In the light of the coming dawn, they could see Blade out on the helicopter pad. He held something in his arms.

It was Nyssa.

Whistler and Mute walked out into the early morning air. The sun rose, spilling golden light through the clouds. Nyssa disintegrated in it's wake, her ashes scattering in the wind. Blade stood at the end of the ledge, watching the sun climb. Mute turned away.

Nyssa had been a vampire, an enemy. Her death should have felt like another triumph, but it didn't. Not even close. There was a touch of sadness in the air. Nyssa, Snowman… She had seen goodness and honour in her enemy.

Now it was all over. Her shoulders loosened at that fact. An extreme tiredness came over her. Suddenly she jolted.

Scud.

Pushing past Whistler she ran back through the glass door.

"SCUD!"


	8. Epilogue

Epilogue. Speaks for itself. Thanks for reading, guys! =]

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Mute cocked the gun and held it against her temple. She was in two minds about whether or not this would work. If it did, great. If it didn't and her healing abilities were even more advanced than she thought, this was gonna _hurt._

She sat in the sparring room. Whistler was busy packing up and salvaging what he could from the smashed-up workshop and Blade was out, but just in case she had locked and bolted the door. No interruptions.

She thought of Scud, conjuring his face in her mind. How she had searched that night. But all she could find was his blood. Probably all the blood that had been in his body, there was so much of it. The suckheads must have thrown his dried-out body out with the trash. There was no scent trail, no sign to where he was. It was like he had just disappeared.

She saw his eyes, his lips, his smile. His messy brown hair. The innocent expression he always used when she tried to be mad at him. Even now, three days after the ultimate betrayal, she couldn't be angry with him. It was impossible. She was angry at Blade, for not telling her he was a familiar. She was _furious _at her self, for giving her heart away so easily. But that wasn't going to happen again.

Hearts that don't beat don't break.

Without any warning the door was bashed aside and she was knocked flying. The gun spun across the floor. Blade held her down.

"What the fuck were you doing!" He snarled in her face.

"WHAT DO YOU CARE?" Mute yelled, hitting out ineffectually.

"Don't you dare say that to me!" Blade shook her. "He's GONE, Mute! He would have watched you die!"

"If I had joined him, would you have blown me up too?" There was a moment of hesitation.

"But you didn't."

"But what if I did, though?"

"_But you didn't." _Blade's tone was dangerously low.

"I take that as a yes, then." Mute turned her head away. "Have you never loved somebody, Blade? So much that you would forgive them anything? So much that you couldn't live without them?" A tear trickled down her cheek. Blade let her get up. He put a hand to her chin and tipped her face up to meet his. He took of his sunglasses and stared into her eyes.

"Mute. Please. I already have enough to hate his memory for. Don't let him take you away from me. Keep yourself alive. You owe me that."

"Ok. I do owe you something, at least. I'll keep myself alive. But I don't belong here anymore, Blade. Let me go in peace."

…

Mute packed a rucksack. She didn't have much to call her own, and there was space by the time she had finished so she stuffed the remaining nooks and crannies with food. Blade nodded to her, then retreated to his living quarters. She understood he wasn't really the type for emotional goodbyes.

She passed Whistler on her way out. He caught her elbow.

"There's a fresh tank of gas in your bike."

"Thanks, Whistler." Mute smiled weakly. He hugged her tightly.

"Good luck, kiddo. Make sure you come back to us. I don't want him to be alone when…"

"Shush, Whistler! Don't get all sappy on me." Mute gave him a sharp-toothed grin. He ruffled her beanie hat.

"Go on then."

Mute left the workshop. Outside, propped up on the stand, was her bike. She got on, looking a little fragile as she ignored the helmet.

USA? Russia? Back to London, where Whistler had found her all those years ago?

Eenie meenie miny mo.

USA it was, then.

Mute kicked the stand under and roared away into the night.

************************************************

Far, far away, on the other side of the world, a pair of golden eyes re-focussed.

"Someone is coming." A light, beautiful voice announced. A pair of perfect lips curved into a knowing smile.

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Thanks Chloe, Chloe, who introduced me to fanfic, and Bex, on who Mute is mainly based.

Also thank you to anyone who read this.


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